He didn't overpress this time, but how Vladimir Kramnik missed several draws and eventually lost his game to Alexander Grischuk was still painful. Fabiano Caruana drew with Wesley So and kept his lead in round eight of the 2018 FIDE Candidates' Tournament in Berlin.
Concentration was the key word in Berlin's eighth round. The design of the playing hall, where each duo of players has its own, separate space, almost forces the participants to focus even harder on their own game than...

At the halfway mark of the 2018 FIDE Candidates' Tournament, Fabiano Caruana is back to being the sole leader. Today the American grandmaster beat Levon Aronian, whereas Shakhriyar Mamedyarov drew quickly with Alexander Grischuk.
Sergey Karjakin won his first game, against Wesley So, whereas Vladimir Kramnik and Ding Liren drew an exciting game.
Vassily Ivanchuk, who turned 49 today, is known to be one of the strongest grandmasters of his generation. The Ukrainian genius is also a member...

Let’s talk about Frank Marshall. This man was U.S. Chess Champion from 1909 to 1936. He was a man who beat Emanuel Lasker once and Capablanca twice, a player who feared no one. He won many tournaments against world class competition. He was an American hero who dared dream of being world chess champion.
Hmmm… I’ve mangled the time frame. So, let’s chill out a bit, toss in some basic Marshall stuff, and start from the beginning.
Born in 1877 in New York City, his family...

What was the key moment for all eight players to qualify for the 2018 Candidates' Tournament? FM Mike Klein does a retrospective on the prospective world champions, showing you how each punched their ticket to Berlin!

We have to thank Vladimir Kramnik again for the only decisive game of the round. And he doesn't seem to intend to change his head-through-wall strategy.
Grischuk managed to surprise Kramnik in his beloved Semi-Tarrasch, but Kramnik navigated the novelty well and got an equal position. Then he started the same thing again. He started looking for winning chances where there weren't any. Even though he said it in the press conference, that he "wasn't really playing for a win" he did say a few times...

"I was telling my friends, I hope the spirit of Fischer is with me. I think it was!" said GM Baskaran Adhiban after winning the GAMMA Reykjavik Open at his first attempt. The Indian GM was the only player to finish on 7.5 points.
The 33rd edition of the Reykjavik Open took place 6-14 March in the Harpa concert hall in Reykjavik, Iceland. A total of 248 players from 34 federations played, including 27 grandmasters.
On the last day, main sponsor GAMMA announced sponsorship for (at least)...

The recent Chess960 unofficial world championship match between GMs Magnus Carlsen and Hikaru Nakamura created quite a buzz. The early viewership numbers seem to prove that there's pent-up interest from chess fans to see a unique game that truly begins at move one. Of course it must be said that watching these two players solve chess puzzles or painting by number would also be enough to draw viewers.
But if Chess960 is going to catch on, can the full allotment of positions be used? The age-old...

By beating Vladimir Kramnik today, Shakhriyar Mamedyarov caught Fabiano Caruana in first place at the 2018 FIDE Candidates' Tournament. Wesley So scored his first win in this sixth round, at the expense of Levon Aronian.
If stamina will be playing an important role in this Candidates'—and why wouldn't it, in a tournament that lasts 14 rounds—things are looking grim for the two oldest participants, Levon Aronian (35) and Vladimir Kramnik (42). Both lost their second game today,...

The 2018 PRO Chess League Playoffs start at 9:00 a.m. Pacific tomorrow with 16 extremely talented teams including eight super-grandmasters vying for a trip to the finals weekend in San Francisco. Here are some things to look for in each of these thrilling matches!
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Eastern Division
Armenia Eagles vs Estonia Horses
The top-seed Armenia Eagles narrowly defeated...